As the Newtown Athletic Club anticipates the opening of its pool complex, it celebrates the opening of its sports training center.

The Newtown Athletic Club opened its 41,000-square-foot Sports Training Center, which will house the facility's leagues and teams as well as be available for rental. Photo courtesy of Newtown Athletic Club.

As Newtown Athletic Club (NAC), Newtown, PA, celebrated the grand opening of its $2.6 million NAC Sports Training Center on Jan. 12, the company also is nearing a milestone. The NAC expects to reach membership capacity by the end of March.

The training center is the second stage of a three-stage plan to expand the footprint of the NAC. The first phase in the expansion occurred in early 2012 with a 12,000-square-foot cardio floor expansion. In May, the NAC will open the final phase, which is its outdoor pool resort complex. That complex will feature water slides, an adult-only resort pool, a zero depth pool, a lazy river and an oversized whirlpool. It also will have a separate entry and concessions for pool patrons.

Partly in response to these additions, the NAC's membership has grown during the past year and will reach capacity of 5,000 memberships (about 12,000 to 13,000 people) by the end of March, according to Linda Mitchell, director of marketing and public relations for the NAC.

About 700 people attended the opening of the sports training center, which will be overseen by Director Josh Tyler. The 41,000-square-foot training center includes a 30,000-square-foot indoor athletic sports arena with turf that is available for rental to local sports teams, organizations and tournaments. The facility will be the new home of the NAC's Big Leagues Academy, Rock Starz All-Stars Cheerleading and the NAC Gymnastics Team. The opening was attended by U.S. Congressman Mike Fitzpatrick and Newtown Board of Supervisors Chairman Mike Gallagher.

The opening included remarks by dignitaries, a ribbon-cutting ceremony, sporting demonstrations, contests and refreshments. The NAC handed out a Zuma 50 Scooter as a grand prize. It also gave away a 42-inch flat-screen TV, an iPad and a trip to the winner's choice of either Disney World or Italy as prizes for its member-joining and referral bonus program.

The facility, which was completed in a year, was designed by Ohlson Lavoie Collaborative, Denver, and built by NAC Apple Construction, Newtown. NAC Apple Construction is a subsidiary of the NAC and was created by Jim Worthington, CEO of the NAC, to do the construction for the NAC and other businesses, according to Mitchell.

"This has been a huge savings and given us much more control of our projects," Mitchell says.

Discuss this Article 2

Linda Mitchell (not verified)

on Feb 7, 2013

Thank you to Club Industry and Pam Kufahl for this wonderful article and recognition. We are so proud and excited to launch this new NAC Sports Training Center facility. This facility is part of a 30 year vision to develop all 20 plus acres of land that is now being used for a comprehensive recreation and fitness complex. The Newtown Athletic Club will be celebrating its 35th anniversary this year in style when we are finished with our Big Build Expansion in May which will include a 4 acre resort style outdoor pool complex as well. We owe a great deal to Club Industry which keeps us all connected and informed.

This new facility is great. It gives us the flexibility to host so many events and sports without having an overwhelming overhead. It has given two of our big programs a beautiful home. I am happy to see the vision we laid out years ago become reality and the feedback from the community has been tremendous.